A Parkland Secondary School student participated in the 2023 Children’s General Assembly in Billund, Denmark.
Emmanuelle Young, 17, lives in Sidney and was one of 80 young people from all over the world chosen to share their ideas with world leaders at the summit from Sept. 19 to 21.
“Children aren’t just the leaders of the future, we are the leaders of the present,” Young said. “It was great to hear different perspectives and learn from the other kids. I was pushing for more technology in schools. Some of the other kids were telling me that they didn’t even have a way to get to school.”
Parkland Secondary School provided $250 for the trip and the Parkland Parent Advisory Council contributed $500.
Before the assembly, Young and other chosen students participated in digital co-creation workshops from April until August. They discussed possible solutions to current world issues.
“The workshops challenged us to think creatively and critically,” Young said. “It was really cool because we got to talk about big topics from a child’s perspective. The group all had such big hearts. We all really supported each other.”
The group used their ideas to form a manifesto, which they presented at the assembly.
“There were around 500 people in the audience, and they were global representatives and United Nations members,” Young added.
The students were divided into groups that focused on different themes, which were science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) for all, making mental health a global priority and amplifying children’s voices.
Young’s group keyed in on STEAM for all.
“We stressed the importance of all children having access to science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics,” she said. “We discussed things like barriers. It’s really a disadvantage when kids don’t have access to things like computers.”
The group also had the opportunity to meet with other young people in Billund as well as the host city’s Mayor Stephanie Storbank. Billund is known as the capital of children.
“I really learned that there are a lot of other young people that are motivated, and they seize opportunities in their communities,” Young said. “They aren’t discouraged because they are young.”
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